V/H/S 2 - Movie Review

"Searching for a missing student, two private investigators break into his house and find collection of VHS tapes. Viewing the horrific contents of each cassette, they realize there may be dark motives behind the student's disappearance."

I have not seen the first V/H/S film but I had read reviews and seen that it had mixed reactions. When reviews and word about its sequel came rushing in, they were slightly better and I thought it was finally time for me to give this horror film a chance.

I will start out by talking about the film as a whole before I break down each individual short story and I will say that I thought they did a pretty good job of implementing the camera into the entire film. Since it's a low budget found footage horror film, it could have easily have felt forced and out of place to have this hand held camera perspective pushed in front of you. I can safely say this wasn't the case and I thought there were actually some innovative usages of it. These are more segmented into the shorts themselves so I won't go into great details about them just yet. 

Starting off with the first short story which was named "Phase l Clinical Trials". This followed the story of a man involved in a car accident who was blinded by the event and is part of an experiment where he has an artificial eye inserted to replace his sight. Now this had some elements to it which were great but also some that I thought were quite poor and lacking the zest that I was looking for. I will mention firstly that how they implemented the low budget camera style into this short was brilliant and such a creative way to make the style feel natural while successfully still engaging the audience. The overall direction that the story seemed to take however was something I felt that wasn't quite right. You have these dead people who can only be seen by this protagonist through his implant and I didn't really feel all that interested by this. I loved the general concept of having us see it from the perspective of his artificial eye, and would have much preferred the filmmakers to have come up with a much better story to use this for. I will say that this was probably the most scary of all four which at least I can give it credit for on this level.

The second short was called "A Ride In The Park" and I think just edged it for me as my favourite out of the four. This story followed a man who just happened to be riding his bike through the park one day when suddenly a woman who has sustained unknown injuries stumbles across him and screams for help. Trying to help, he comes across another man whom he believes to be her attacker, confronts him only to find out that he is a zombie, becomes infected through a bite and turns into a zombie himself. You had another unique idea for implementing the style of filming the short through the use of a go-pro camera which again I really liked how they did this. Now I say that this was probably the most entertaining of the four shorts. Something about seeing the perspective of a zombie was so intriguing that I was deeply disappointed when it ended. I could have literally watched a full length feature film just based on that very idea and would have been overly satisfied with what was given to me. I think something that is worth a mention for this short was the make up that was used. I thought who ever created the make up effects did a fantastic job at really convincing me. From all of the blood, wounds and general image of the zombie I thought they completely nailed it in this department which was truly impressive to see. 

"Safe Haven" was the short that just finished behind the second short in the list of my favourites. This followed the documentation of a crew who step inside a building that is inhabited by a cult like group. This one is quite difficult to describe in fact but that very reason is one of the many reasons why it was so damn good. Co-directed and co-written by Gareth Evans who some of you may know from 2012's The Raid did a fantastic job of yet again providing us with heaps of over the top violence and memorable sequences. As this particular short was running I did not expect it to take the direction that it did. Not to say that I was let down by this, because I certainly wasn't, it was amazing, but I don't think I could have even conjured anything similar to what we were given. I was constantly second guessing and left pondering what was really going on which was extremely entertaining. While it wasn't really scary, it certainly didn't feel out of place for an anthology horror film and the ambiguity of the whole short made the atmosphere and tone fit in with what the movie was trying to achieve immaculately. Again I think a notable mention for the make up effects and minimal use of CGI in this short are worth mentioning. Another great job well done in this department and even for the monster that was shown I thought it actually looked surprisingly good. It could have completely destroyed the effect that the short was trying to have had it looked terrible but I was fine with how they created it.

And finally, the last short was definitely the worst in my opinion which was "Slumber Party Alien Abduction". This followed a group of teenagers who as the title suggests, are victims to an alien abduction while their parents leave town for the weekend. While I mentioned that "Safe Haven" could have easily felt out of place due to its subject matter but thankfully didn't, this one sadly did. I had not in fact seen any trailers, footage etc for this film so I really had no clue in what to expect so that could well have had an impact on my viewing of this particular short. I just felt with what the film was trying to be it didn't really settle in with that. While all of the other shorts were outrageous in some way or another, this was just completely ludicrous and it hindered my enjoyment massively. As well as this, I couldn't really follow entirely what was going on. This was just the presentation of the short as well as the convoluted editing that it had. It felt like them trying to give the perspective sometimes of the dog was a bit confusing too. The story had nothing to do with the dog at all so the only reason I could think that they included this was to try and give us a 'unique' view of the events unfolding. 

As for the story that was connecting all of these tapes together, I didn't particularly care for that either. Not that I thought it was bad or anything along those lines, but it was sort of just something that was present in order to connect the dots together and give some context to these short films that we are shown. It is of course the details that are in the synopsis I included at the start of this review and something that I enjoyed about this at least was the tension that it created. As the break between each shorts went on, I felt more and more unnerved by what these two private detectives were going through. It provided me with a few tense moments and scares which I can at least say it had some purpose in relation the overall film.

Before I give my verdict I will just mention one or two very minor gripes that I had with the film. One is being that I expected it to be a lot more scarier than it actually was. Like I said, maybe this is just because I went into watching it completely blind eyed and hadn't seen anything in relation to the stories. I think I'll probably be in the minority because of this reason but if I'm not and you actually agree, please let me know because I couldn't help but keep thinking that it didn't unsettle me as much as I was hoping.

Another little problem was in relation to the two private detectives watching the same tapes that we are seeing. For starters, why did they seem so comfortable and natural with coming across multiple TVs set up in an organised fashion as well as dozens of VHS tapes scattered across a secluded house at night? Something about their reaction to the whole situation they were coming across was just completely fake and wasn't half what I was expecting them to be like dealing with it all. As well as this, their reactions for after watching the tapes and when the man comes across the woman unconscious were just ridiculous too. Of course, I'm undeniably nitpicking here and even for a larger budget horror film, the level of acting isn't particularly something I should be worrying about. It was just something about these minor moments that had me baffled as to why they couldn't just give some form of a normal reaction the these horrifying situations they were being put in.

Overall, I'd recommend watching V/H/S 2 because I certainly had a good time with it. There are a few laughs, a few scares and some great moments in some extremely creative shorts from some talented directors and writers. I'm not sure how it compares to the first film as I haven't seen it but I definitely intend to check it out now after watching the more than satisfying sequel. 

Man of Steel - Movie Review

"A young itinerant worker is forced to confront his secret extraterrestrial heritage when Earth is invaded by members of his race."

Here it is, easily one of the most anticipated films of this year certainly for myself, and I think I speak for many others in this instance. Was it better than Superman Returns? Did Zack Snyder do a good job at the helm? Was Henry Cavill a worth Clark Kent? Here's my opinions.

I will have to start out by saying that maybe I am in a small minority here, but I expected a lot more from the film on a whole. This impression was created from the earlier trailers that we got which marketed this film as being extremely layered and having plenty of emotional depth to it. Finally we would be getting a much more relatable and grounded approach for Superman that I was looking forward to immensely. Not that this makes Man of Steel bad, certainly not for me anyway, but it was a sufficient action film nonetheless. It feels incredibly unnerving saying that I had a slight problem with a Superman man film being a little too action orientated but it was more the fact on how the film was presenting to us through the advertising and general marketing of the film.

As for the plot, there were some elements of this that I absolutely loved but some that I had problems with. I will start with the parts that really had me hooked which I think the greatest example of this was the opening sequence. It was a daunting question that many people were attempting to piece together when the trailers surfaced and we caught glimpses of Krypton. The question on everyone's lips was how long would the film focus on the events taking place on this planet. I thought they did a great job of handling the amount of time that was used here and it was a truly captivating opening to the film that greatly set the tone of what to expect.

Something else in terms of the narrative of the film that I appreciated was how well they tied in General Zod's character. I suppose this also features the writing but I loved how they approached this particular aspect of the film. They could have easily shoehorned the villain into the film to just have him serve as a threat to Superman but it genuinely felt like he served a purpose to the story unfolding. His connections to the opening of the film, as well as the general storyline of Clark Kent attempting to discover his true identity and the many questions he requires answers to. It strayed away from something that the genre is renowned for failing to intriguing audiences in and was a breath of fresh air that rather than him being evil for no apparent reason, he had sane motives that could actually be relatively understood and sympathized with.

Now Zack Snyder's directing was going to be something that I was skeptical about from the moment I heard it right down till I saw the film and it's safe to say he delivers. Judging by his track record over the years, my reasons for this were evidently right with his abomination of a film 'Sucker Punch'. What I will say is that you definitely get the sense that this is a Zack Snyder directed film. He has those clear inclusions like the extreme close ups and flash zooms; not to mention the gritty, dark tone that all of his movies look to stabilize within them. But they all work for what Man of Steel is both trying to be and successfully achieves. A more grounded, somewhat realistic approach to a Superman is keeping up with the trend that Hollywood seems to be following in more recent years and it resignates perfectly. Looking back at Snyder's appointment, I can see why Warner Bros made the choice. For how they wanted the film to both look and feel, Zack was the perfect man to carry out that vision.

As for David Goyer's writing, I thought he did a good job for the most part. You really get the sense that he wanted to take some of the successful elements of the Batman trilogy that he wrote and translate this over into Superman's world and it worked. Aside from maybe the fact that subtle references and jokes were crammed in about Kal-El being given the name "Superman" as well as that whole scene between Cavill and Adams in the interrogation room, completely unnecessary. Though I was expecting to have these and there at least needed to be a mention of the well known name, just it would have been much more fitting had they not tried to cram these poor comical moments into the film. His writing for the story was pretty solid, maybe not as much depth into Clark's past and his dealings with day to day life was explored but for what was included, I really liked those parts. I think that's where the film lost me a bit when towards the second act they tried to push the large scale action scenes in to keep the audience riveted and keep the general film goers satisfied; where as I would have much preferred less of that and more of a deep origins story.

This leads me into my next point about the non-linear structure that the film followed. This was something again that I actually really appreciated about it because had it either not be done right, or done at all, could have massively determined how much I liked the film. Rather than showing us Clark growing up as a child and making the forward step into becoming a man, the first time we see him straight after the opening sequence, he is already into his 30's. This was a great way of having the film play out as flashbacks were then used to give us some insight into his experiences as a child. I couldn't have thought of a better way of doing it as I know for a fact that I didn't want the film to take around 30 minutes or so covering all of the details of his childhood that were neatly included with the use of flashbacks anyway. It gave us both the necessary information and attachment to this character that we needed while not taking too much of the running time up to do so.

The array of acting talent that Man of Steel is presenting us with is something that arguably nobody can deny. I will start by mentioning the big one, I thought Henry Cavill was great as Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman. This has never really been a problem for me with the Superman films as studios and casting directors always seem to have made great choices in this department. As I'm sure all will agree with Christopher Reeve as the iconic character, I even thought that Brandon Routh did a fine job despite the movie's huge flaws. He both looked the part and played it immaculately, really bringing a great likability to the character that allowed the audience to engage as well as being Superman physically. I mean wow. I didn't realize how built Cavill was until there is a shot of him with no t-shirt on included and you really discover how much bulking this man has done for the role. 

Amy Adams was great too as Lois Lane who despite playing a rather chunky role in this film, will have a much more pivotal one in sequels to come. I've heard that people actually had problems with her role in the film, not necessarily her acting but the character itself. I had no problem as I thought she fit into the story they were telling nicely and it was a good way to include her without it feeling forced whatsoever. Other worthy mentions include Russell Crowe as Jor-El who did an amazing job, managing to really attach me into the emotions and feelings he was constantly having to go through. As did Kevin Costner in the role of Johnathan Kent, Superman's human father. He didn't play as big of a role as I would have liked him to but for the times he was on screen, he really managed to play it flawlessly. Michael Shannon was amazing as General Zod also who like I mentioned earlier, was a surprisingly layered villain. We were given these strong and reasonable motivations for what he was doing rather than him just being like "I'm evil and I want to kill Superman!". There were actually moments where I could really connect and sympathize with what he was going through which was unbelievably odd for the film to have this effect on me. It's worth mentioning that this was territory that also fell into generic waters at times also. Parts of the film including Zod had elements to them that felt a little "been there, done that" but I suppose that is to be somewhat expected with a superhero film.

A quick mention for the more finer details including the score for the film, it is as expected brilliant. Hans Zimmer provides yet another epic, orchestral composing of music that fits the tone and visuals absolutely immaculately. He truly is one of the greatest music composers for films out there to this very day and it replicates his work done on the Dark Knight trilogy which like I said is a great fit. Another little thing worth mentioning is some little snippets of the dialogue that really confused me. Not in the sense of not knowing what the meaning was or what was going on, but interesting choices to say the least. One of them was a line Amy Adam's says which is along the lines of a "dick measuring contest". WHAT?! It was just completely out of place considering that this is supposed to be a child friendly film and just with the general tone it didn't fit well at all. Another was "What if I have to tinkle?" I was just left completely confused as to why these choices of dialogue were used, they didn't seem to make sense with how the film was playing out and trying to present itself.

I will end with the action sequences which make up a significant amount of the film. Actually a lot more than I was expecting which I said before, maybe I just completely misunderstood the film but I didn't expect as many as there was. One that actually bored me and I wasn't interested in is worth mentioning and that was when Zod and his crew land on Earth and confront Kent. It ends up being Faora-Ul and a robot vs Superman which I really didn't see the importance of including this. Other than just being a big budget spectacle, what purpose or interest was there to it? I'd have much preferred a longer encounter between Zod and Clark over this. Despite that, the other action scenes, more notably the opening sequence on Krypton and the final battle between Zod and Superman were by far the best and really offered us some great moments that helped me enjoy the film for what it was. I also thought that the special effects that were used for these scenes and just in the film in general were great. That was actually another factor that I was skeptical about before its release, which was Superman flying. I don't know quite what it was from the trailer but something about didn't particularly sit well with me. I can safely say I was completely stupid to think this as they are incredible and serve their purpose thoroughly for the film.

Overall, I had a really good time with Man of Steel. Was it quite the film that I was expecting based on the earlier trailers we got? No. Despite this was it still enjoyable? Yes. Was a sufficient summer action blockbuster? Definitely. It was a lot better than the version we got back in 2006 by Bryan Singer which I'm sure the majority will agree on. If you take this all into account and just take the film for what it is, then you'll have a superb time at the cinemas just like I did.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - Teaser Trailer Review

Late December of 2012 we were given the first film adaptation of J. R. R Tolkien's second most popular book series which was The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. I'm not sure whether I'm in the minority but I understand that my opinions are very different to that of others. I personally didn't enjoy it one bit. I know that it is intentionally different from that of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and this is supposed to be more of a fantasy adventure where as The Lord of the Rings films were much more action based while still containing dramatic scenes and a fantasy/adventure narrative. For me, it just completely lacked the capturing of said adventure and was utterly dull. I've never really been all for the adaptation of The Hobbit books and watching the first film only strengthened my feelings on this topic.

Skip to June 11th 2013 and this is the first look of the second 'Hobbit' installment; The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. I will start off by saying my immediate reaction whilst watching the trailer and letting what I'd just seen settle in, I already get the strong sense that this will be much better. Of course, the first film was required to take a lot of development, making sure that the premise for the films was set up and flowed nicely but I just think it dwelled on this a little too much for my liking. So many of the scenes felt like they could have quite easily been cut out due to lack of anything taking place or no development being included whatsoever. As for this trailer, which has to indeed be taken with a pinch of salt as it is only a trailer, seems much more lively in terms of the events and looks to be pushing to a much more action orientated plot. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved all of the development and slow paced scenes that The Lord of the Rings gifted us, but I don't want to see a just short of 3 hour film with only this contained within. This sequel needs to find the right balance and what I gathered from the trailer is that it has learnt from this mistake and seems to possibly be doing so.

An element that Peter Jackson is renowned for, which was one of the few things I enjoyed about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is he really knows how to capture a scene. The landscapes and use of both practical and CGI work is brilliantly executed, offering a real immersive experience into his films. He has done this in other projects he has directed too like in his version of the classic King Kong. He thoroughly knows how to capture a sequence that offers sheer magnitude; presenting it to the audience is such a clear and well structured way. You get the real sense that the continuity for this trilogy will be just as good as The Lord of the Rings which credit goes to Jackson again for keeping the tone and look of the film feel as good as ever. The colour pallet that is used in this trailer is something that I'd also like to point out as it is something  that is nailed every time, fitting the tone and style for Jackson's films. Even if like me, you didn't necessarily care for The Hobbit or even The Lord of the Rings trilogy, you can't deny them of the immaculate job they produce on creating and offering such a spectacle for the audience; it's truly mesmerizing stuff.

Another reason Why I believe that I will be more connected with this one as opposed to the first installment lands on the screen times for certain characters. I believe Gandalf will be more of the character that he was in The Lord of the Rings trilogy than he was in the opening Hobbit film. He was a character that was beloved and close to fans heart's in the original trilogy and for me he was just not a shadow of the person that we saw in that film. It looks like could finally be seeing the origins of where the magnitude and power he holds started up from which is something that certainly interests me massively. The return of Legolas (Orlando Bloom) is also something that excites me very much. Say what you will about Orlando Bloom's acting but I thought he was spot on in the original trilogy. His character had always been a favourite of mine as I grew up on those films throughout my late childhood and still to this day is a great segment of why I love The Lord of the Rings trilogy so much. It's great to see him given some light in the trailer and I hope he has somewhat of a pivotal role to play in this film (I've not read the books so I'm not sure whether he has a minimal, huge or mediocre sized role).

It looks like there will be some memorable and breathtaking action sequences included. I understand that this was the case of including and misleading myself with The Hobbit trailer initially but I get a feeling that this is the right deal this time round. There looks to be raised stakes and much more of a threat this time round, like there is truly something at risk for the characters. Another observation was possibly the inclusion of more fearsome enemies that will have to be faced and ultimately conquered to get them to where they want to be. This was another factor that the first Hobbit film was lacking and where it can truly capture some of the spirit that made The Lord of the Rings trilogy so highly regarded and will forever remain one of the greatest trilogies.

I'm going to have to end on an absolutely abysmal note by sharing my thoughts on the dragon. I thought the CGI looked utterly terrible. I've not seen anybody else's opinion on the matter but surely I can't be the only one who thinks this? For an expert in the trade like Peter Jackson and the crew he works with, every one of his films is orientated around the use of extensive CGI but it works because it looks so god damn authentic. I couldn't believe what I was seeing when we got the look of the dragon fully and this was what we got. Hopefully it was either a rough version which I highly doubt, but being a teaser trailer they could certainly go back and apply some adjustments to scratch it up a little better. It could either be that or that the angling or shot that was used just made it seem like that. It could have easily been an awkward shot for them to have made it look as good as it will from a frontal view but it's easily been done before so that can't really be justified as a legitimate excuse. I have faith it will redeem itself when the release of the film comes around and that in fact it is much better than first thought.

On the whole, I'm relying on this one being much better which in the early stages I am definitely getting the feeling that it will be. It looks like the stakes are much higher this time, giving that real sense of the true action/adventure films that Peter Jackson has presented us with so well over the years.

Here is the teaser trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsKRzJkDiyg

Game of Thrones Season 3 - TV Review

"Seven noble families fight for control of the mythical land of Westeros."

The third season of Game of Thrones has now come to an end and after 10 intense and emotional episodes, I will give you my review of the season as a whole. Starting off with the narrative of this season. Of course, it is a television series so the storyline is going to be consistent through each season but there are individual arcs, narratives and journeys going on throughout. I felt that on the whole, this season had to up the ante and increase the stakes coming off the back of the success and in my opinion the strongest of the seasons which was number 2. Even after watching the third season, I remain with the same mind frame but I have to give admiration to the third season and give credit to the writers for really help increase the tension and drama throughout season 3.

A thing that never seems to stop amazing me are the exquisite locations and set designs that are used throughout each series, but there was something in particular about the locations and sets in this season that had me bewildered at how fine of a job had been done. As you know, a mix of exterior scenes filmed in countries such as Norther Ireland, Morocco, Malta and Croatia and interior sets designed, built and filmed in Los Angeles are used and they have a hugely authentic feel to them. You can't but being immersed into the world that is being presented on screen and it is a real credit to everybody involved particularly the location scouts who scour the globe to find the countries that will best match the era that is tried to be captured. 

Tied into this is a job well done for the costume designers working on the show because they play a huge part, just like the location scouts, in making this world come to life. The consistency of their jobs is immaculate and pitch perfect on every single scene, of each episode of each season. They constantly are changing the costumes around and spicing things up to never feel like these characters who are perceived as wealthy and higher up in the society are wearing similar or the exact same clothes any time that a day has passed. This is key to really grabbing an audience's attention and focus to be invested in the story as if it simply wasn't depicting the century that it's supposed to be, nobody would have an interest in it whatsoever. 

Something that I found could have been a huge problem which is a recurring thought in my head is the introduction of new characters. When all of the footage, trailers, posters etc are released in the build up to each season I have found myself time and time again worrying about the inclusions of all these new characters, how they will manage to fit in, will they have intriguing storylines as well as balancing out the original characters who we love so much. Yet again, my prayers were answered and by the end of this season, I can't wait to delve deeper into these stories once again when season 4 returns. Possibly the strongest example of this was Thomas Brodie-Sangster's character who when first introduced I had no care for in any form. Every time he appeared in a scene I thought it was just bland and couldn't wait for it to cut to another more interesting character. It proved a 'slow burner' as the more it progressed, I became more and more intrigued and invested and by the last couple of episodes was completely hooked on what was going on. This is a huge praise for the writing which I will now talk about.

While taking about the new actors, I will mention that the acting was yet again pretty much spot on all round. While there a couple of actors/actresses that you believe were brought in for the more minimal roles because of the budget etc and don't in any way match that of the leading characters, they are fine for what they are. Jacob Anderson is a clear example of this, he is by no means a good actor but as his role requires little speaking and only a minor inclusion, it is passable to have him playing the character. You have recurring actors and actresses such as Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey and Rory Mccann that maintain solid performances throughout as expected. These are the real standouts of the cast that as a whole converse of a great diverse range of ages and acting talents.

Where do you start with the writing on Game of Thrones? It is without doubt some of the best screenwriting that I have ever come across. Not only is this for a television show I mean, which much more effort and complexity needs to be put into it but I mean for any format of entertainment. Such well constructed writing has been the format for each season and just seems to be getting better and better. They have that great balance of intense action scenes when required, gruesome encounters between characters and tense dialogue in scenes that are simply just two characters interacting. It has me hooked as soon as the episode begins right to the very end and this is down to the directing and editing of each episode two as all three components come together as one and make each minute precious. I felt that this was probably the most well written season of the three as there is now more characters than ever to counter balance and who are constantly crossing paths which has just put more pressure on the writers to deliver. They have more than taken this job ever so well and helped to deliver some of the most intense scenes of the entire show in this series.

Despite my unfamiliarity with George R. R Martin's work, I've heard countless times that the show does an excellent job of staying true to the books. It can be a huge problem for either TV or film adaptations of books that they stray away too much from the source material. Sometimes this is intentional to try and keep the concept but stamp their own authority and take on the idea. This never really goes down well with fans of the books but Game of Thrones seems to have brought the books to life. Considering that George R. R Martin's work is very highly regarded the writers have done an excellent job to seemingly convert it into a screenplay, having every single detail that makes the books work so well and portraying that on screen. Hats off to them for the fact that an idea so complex has been made very easily understandable and that you can actually keep up with everything taking place. This is an aspect that could easily be the downfall of the show and really makes or breaks whether people will watch it/enjoy it. If the writing isn't quite up to scratch, you can completely lose what is going on and with a narrative that is so layered and contains so much depth, it could be relatively easy to mess up on this part. This isn't the case whatsoever as the work seems to be adapted extremely well and is presented in such a way yet again that you get the gist of everything that is going on.

Speaking of intense episodes/scenes, possibly the greatest episode of the show so far deserves an honorary mention. Of course if you watch the programme you'll know exactly what I mean, 'The Red Wedding'. Absolute mayhem ensued and like I said I am not familiar with the books so this took me completely back. I did not expect such a twist to take place and it was done in such a shocking, brutal manner that even if you were aware of the events of the book, you couldn't help but be impressed and affected. Countless violent scenes in this episode just stepped up anything we'd ever seen before and took every little sequence we might have gotten from one episode and shoved it all into one. Not to mention that while I'm making it sound like one big hour long massacre (which it felt like) there was a great balance yet again or drama and tension throughout. You had the classic dialogue scenes and interactions that was setting the real climax up and I was invested beyond belief with what was going on. The final episode was to be the 'calm after the storm' referencing the events of the previous episode and the news getting out to everyone of what had happened. Honestly, I liked this episode just as much as it ran for over an hour and had me rooted right from the off. When something as dramatic and mind-blowingly insane like The Red Wedding takes place, I was left wanting the conclusions and developments of these stories immediately.

Overall, season 3 of Game of Thrones was yet another excellent, well crafted season that deserves all of the recognition and credit it has been receiving. While not quite having enough to make it my favourite season over number two, it certainly lived up to everything I was expecting it to be and will make this next year of waiting for season 4 feel like absolute hell.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson On Marvel's Radar For Avengers 2?

Quicksilver's appearance in both the Avengers and X-Men universes has been the talk of the town for a couple of weeks now after Fox revealed they have cast Evan Peters in the role. Many discussions then took place about the confusion that this was going to create considering that Joss Whedon had already made his announcement that both Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch would be involved in Avengers 2; meaning the only logical and possible way this could be done is different actors playing the character. Now finally we have the first speculative actor that is being lined up to play Quicksilver and that is Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

Before I put my feelings about this decision of potential casting, I will just inform you that in no way am I familiar with this character in any way shape or form. The extent to my knowledge is that he is a mutant, son of Magneto from the X-Men universe and his powers are being able to think and move at superhuman speeds. I get the feeling that this is probably the basic necessities I need to get a sense of how this character will fit in, play out etc. What I am unsure about is whether Aaron Taylor-Johnson is a suitable actor to take on the character's persona and play an accurate Quicksilver from the comics. 

What I will say from my position though is that I really like Aaron Taylor-Johnson. I believe that this could well indeed be a great casting from Marvel's part with his rise to popularity over recent years. As you probably know him from Kick-Ass, he has also featured in such films as Nowhere Boy, Savages and The Illusionist. This isn't to mention other projects that are yet to be released including Kick-Ass 2 and the Godzilla reboot. For me he is certainly someone that is making a strong name for himself and his popularity is clearly increasing. I believe a massive break in Avengers 2 would be the absolute pinnacle he needs to push him on to becoming a household name. I'm a fan of his work and I can't see a reason why he wouldn't be a fitting choice as Quicksilver.

Like I said, I'm not entirely sure what this character's credentials are but Taylor-Johnson is a fine actor and would more than be able to hold his own on screen with the likes of Robert Downey Jr (if he returns), Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans and the rest of the cast. 

As well as this, he seems like he will be able to pull off the appearance of the character too. If I'm correct he is supposed to be in his late teens, so around the 20 year old age mark. Being 23 years old and looking around the perfect age anyway is another convincing factor that makes him more than suitable to play this character in my eyes. He seems to play teenager's solidly as his performances in Kick-Ass and more notably in my opinion, his portrayal of John Lennon in Nowhere Boy is clear evidence for this. 

All this is at the moment is pure speculation but I've seen a few websites that have been reporting this story and at first, I passed it off as nothing. The more and more I saw it the more compelling I found it and suddenly I felt the urge to write an entry as it could well happen. Who knows, maybe this is just pure speculation and nothing comes of it. Maybe Aaron Taylor-Johnson turns the role down (highly unlikely, I mean who would?!) or Marvel decide to go with someone else as it does only say he is their number one of many on the list.

http://www.totalfilm.com/news/rumour-marvel-keen-on-aaron-taylor-johnson-to-play-quicksilver

The Hangover Part III - Movie Review

"When one of their own is kidnapped by an angry gangster, the Wolf Pack must track down Mr. Chow, who has escaped from prison and is on the lam."

Back in 2009, we were given a brilliant, fresh comedy in the form of "The Hangover" directed by Todd Phillips who has had previous credits on such films as Old School, Starsky & Hutch and Road Trip. Before the first installment of The Hangover, I was never particularly fond of Todd Phillips' work. Although I did enjoy Starsky & Hutch back in the day when I first saw it, I was not overly impressed with the other films he had directed. That's why The Hangover was so refreshing for me; it caught me off guard completely and remains one of my favourite comedies of the 00's decade for sure. Now after an extremely disappointing sequel 2 years ago, how does this one fair?

I'll begin by saying that this should never have been a franchise. It was one of those films that was that innovative and well executed that it worked perfectly as a stand alone film like it was intended. It was only the status that it earned, as well as the box office return achieving the highest grossing R rated comedy that pursued the team to work on a sequel. I did not like Part II like many others due to its lack of creativity and just being a complete rehash of the previous installment. When I heard that after this they were then going to finalize it by making the franchise a trilogy, I in no way was pleased about this. I truly believed that they couldn't come up with something that was going to satisfy me at all, let alone live up to the original. After seeing the third and final installment, my concerns were confirmed.

One thing I will give the writers credit for is that they took a different route with the third part. They'd obviously learnt from their mistakes in terms of the story from Part II and tried to completely revamp the narrative that this one would follow. I can at least give them some admiration for this because it certainly was different to what we've seen in this franchise and I can appreciate that they tried to spice things up. Sadly, it lacks the true feel of a Hangover film for me. As much as all of the references, revisits and returning characters, there was no hangover for a start which begs the question of why is it called 'The Hangover then?! Despite my relief of it not being the same old same old, they didn't incorporate enough of what made the first film so good into this one which meant that it just didn't sit right with me and right off the bat meant that I wasn't going to enjoy it as much because of that.

Now the main factor that seemingly tests whether the film is any good or not, is how funny/not funny it is. For me, the novelty has just completely worn off and honestly I hardly laughed at all. I found myself in the same situation as the previous film in that I just didn't really care for what was going on because I really didn't want to see these characters returning. For the first half of this film, there was some moments which I did laugh out loud so I can't say that it completely flopped in that respect but as for the second half; that's where it truly failed. So many jokes felt crammed in and out of place that I literally found it uncomfortable sitting there watching the film. For general audiences, I'm sure this will be a blast because I know a lot of people that liked the second Hangover and this one seems to be more associated in the humour department with the second film than the first.

Something I honestly found forced and done extremely over the limit was the direction the film took. Once all of the mayhem ensues and the wolf pack is on the hunt for Chow, they track him down where they end up finding him in Vegas. This was Todd Phillips and Craig Mazin's way of trying to bring the trilogy 'full circle' as well as trying to bring that spirit that the original had going for. Sadly, it just didn't work on any level for me and I was constantly sat there rolling my eyes when all of the references were being shoe horned in. Of course, I half expected this to happen considering that this is the allegedly final film and that Todd Phillips wants to try and recreate that smooth flow and hysterical comedy that The Hangover had going for it. A major example of this is that they revisited the stripper's house who Stu had drunkenly married two films ago. It didn't serve a purpose to help solve the narrative and the problems that the characters were facing; it was just a clear revisit to the first film's events and a character to try and gain cheap laughs. 

One thing that I thought was completely ludicrous was that they had Alan take a transition in personality from The Hangover Part II to this one. When we are re-introduced to his character at the beginning of the film, we can clearly see a change that he has undertaken and a poor excuse of this was that he hadn't been taking the medication prescribed to him for six months. I just felt like this was a bad way to try and make things different to the previous two films and have Alan still be the front and centre of the show without it being a rehash of the character we've already seen. He was just an obnoxious, stuck up and quite frankly annoying character that I couldn't stand at times. He was one of the reasons why the first film was so great, I can't think of a character that was in any way shape or form similar to how he was. His performance was great and clearly all of the best writing went into his character, making him the main attraction to countless rewatches of the film especially for myself. This film just throws all likability for him out of the window, meaning that there really is no appeal in this film at all.

Overall, The Hangover Part III probably lived up to what I was expecting it to be. From the trailers and early reviews that came in, my thoughts were that this just never should have happened. After watching it, I stick with the exact same mindset and I will forever only think of The Hangover as a one off, brilliantly executed stand alone film that didn't need or have any sequels to follow. What I will add though is that for all of its flaws and downfalls, I still just about enjoyed this one a bit more because I can appreciate that it tried to do something different rather than just completely rehashing the story and even jokes from the first film like Part II did.

After Earth - Movie Review

"A crash landing leaves Kitai Raige and his father Cypher stranded on Earth, 1,000 years after events forced humanity's escape. With Cypher injured, Kitai must embark on a perilous journey to signal for help."

After Earth is M. Night Shymalan's latest film starring father/son combo Will and Jaden Smith. This comes three years after his last project, "The Last Airbender" which luckily I haven't seen and never will, but haven't a single positive thing said about it. This truly confirmed Shyamlan's demise over recent years and this film was creating some hype as to whether it would be a return to solid work for the once beloved director/writer. 

For me, this film was by no means the return of M. Night Shyamalan in both departments that he worked on. Starting out with the plot, what you see in the trailer is what you get. Now people could be thinking "well of course, the trailer is supposed to tell you what the film is about" but I couldn't help but feel throughout the film that there was going to be more to it. I was sat there pondering and utterly hoping that more depth would be added to this seemingly paper thin plot that was driving this film. There didn't seem to be anything at stake for these characters. Obviously, Jaden Smith's character was trying to signal help so that his father could be treated and they would both be saved. Am I the only one that felt like there could have been something implemented that could have made much more use of the general concept and world that was faintly being hinted at beneath the cracks of After Earth. If Shyamalan and Whitta had really explored the possibilities and directions that could have been taken with this crash landing and journey being taken, it could have made for a much more interesting and unique film.

Which leads me into my next point which is my strongest case for the film being poor in my opinion, which is the writing. After Earth fails on almost every single level from the storytelling right to the depth. I will start with the dialogue in this film. I really don't see the popular trend of implementing comic relief into every movie nowadays but it is well and truly irritating me to the point that I actually wanted to stop watching at some parts. In what way shape or form does this type of film need comic relief moments? It doesn't. Yet Shyamalan and Whitta insisted on trying to break moments of tension or emotion that could have actually added some much needed layers to this bland picture. It completely flopped at every moment where this pathetic, cheesy dialogue was being shoved into the audience's faces and took me out of any scene that I could have potentially been invested or immersed into.

Another aspect that completely failed in relation to the writing was on the whole, my lack of investment in the characters and therefore the story. There was never any moments where I actually cared about what was going on, where I actually was rooting for these characters to succeed or feared for their well being. The lack of tension and development was what made this such a mediocre at best film and easily instantly forgettable for me. Any action sequence or emotional scene just completely passed me by and I was not remotely invested with what was taking place. I expected there to be so much more depth in terms of this father and son, development of their personalities and some insight into the lives that they live. Not only was this not even hinted at or touched upon, it was totally left out and that just took me out of caring about this movie. 

As for the film's pacing, this was something that I actually appreciated about it. Despite the opening 20 minutes which was trying to be used to set up the premise and give some back story, the film maintained a relatively faster pacing than previous M. Night Shyamalan films. This was a good aspect because otherwise I would have been utterly bored senseless had it not been for the running time not feeling too heavy. Having said this, in relation to both the direction and pacing, I would have much preferred there to be slower moments in order to give some development and breath life into these characters. I thought it could have worked perfectly if the crash was covered within the first five minutes of the film, or it even begins after the incident has taken place and anything prior to that which serves a purpose to the story is shown via flashback. This way the film could have spent longer getting to the core of these two characters and actually had me caring about what was happening. 

I thought that even though a good 1 hour of the film's 1 hour 30 minute running time is spent on earth, it was still underutilized. This links to my previous point of how I would have liked Shyamlan to approach the film in that they could have made this abandoned planet feel much more daunting and give it a real presence. I felt that everything taking place on earth just flew by and didn't really seem to cover much ground; the events just seemed to begin and end within a flash. If the film had been a bit longer, tweaked the script so that development was added and really got to the core of Jaden Smith and Will Smith's distant and faint relationship, it could have made for interesting viewing. 

Now the majority of the technological advancements seen were actually quite impressive. I bought into the fact that these could be pieces of equipment that would be used in the future.  Such items as the technology used to help Will Smith's character view his son's activity and progress was a great idea and was actually well presented in the film too. I wish they would have played on this aspect a little more and had it served the purpose that Will Smith claimed it had earlier on. He expressed that it allows him to see everything Jaden can and that he will know when to alert him from danger when it is miles away. Despite this, on several occasions interferences or just not being able to sense creatures meant that this equipment didn't really serve as strong of a use as I was expecting it to. Other technology that I appreciated was the machine that indicated what injuries Cypher had suffered and allowed him to stabilize these injuries to assure that he could make it through till help arrived. This was something that I thought was both visually well done and actually added something to the plot as it played on the futuristic setting being portrayed. 

What I would have liked to have seen play a more pivotal role to the narrative was this idea of Jaden Smith having to return to the older ways of evolution. What I mean is that he was alone, with only the bare essentials available for him to complete the mission ahead of him. I liked that they tried to implement this but again it was something only slightly touched upon and was certainly underused in my opinion. I would have loved if they had gone about this by stripping everything away from what he had at his disposal, meaning the only tool he had was say a weapon and communication and guidance from his wounded father. They also tried to incorporate this with the whole element of the 'monsters' and that they have evolved to kill humans but again we come across at most around three of four of them and they never really seem to pose this highly spoke about threat. One of the creatures actually helps Jaden Smith's character on one occasion which just completely throws this idea that they put across out of the window.

As for the special effects which are going to be a major talking point of this film, they are as bad as they look in the trailers. Anybody who had seen the trailers for After Earth could fundamentally agree on the fact that the CGI in the film looked terrible; and it certainly lived up to that status. I don't why the effects were as bad as they were but it seems to be an aspect of film making that Shyamalan has grown to love and include in his more recent films. Why? I don't have a clue and this just took me out of the action sequences even more as they were completely fake and even laughable. 

Will Smith brings all he can to this bland, emotionless character that has been put in front of him, but sadly it just doesn't click. Now I don't blame Smith for this, as we all know he has shown that he can act well before but he is only doing what he has been told to do. His character is purposefully dull which allowed him to become the first ever person to 'ghost'. But apart from that, it just doesn't work as he is in no form relatable and therefore just serves up the ever repetitive response that it just doesn't make you invested in the film. As for Jaden Smith, for the most part I didn't have a problem with his acting. Aside from the fact that he starts out with some strange accent and slowly loses it around the half way mark of the film, he wasn't as bad as everybody is/will be making him out to be. Withstandable at least.

To conclude the review I'm going to talk about the ending to the film. This was something I really couldn't get my head around. The main underlining tone of the film is this relationship between Will Smith and his son and that he has never really been the father he is expected to and should have been. Once Jaden is successful in sending out the beacon and signalling for help, a rescue crew arrives and they are reunited once again. Despite all of what has happened, the first thought that comes into Will Smith's head is to salute his son. I understand that it was supposed to be his way of indicating he finally respects him but do you not think to do this showing his affection as a father would have both conquered the distance between their relationship and expressed his appreciation for what his son had just done? The way in which it was presented too was extremely comical in my opinion. They clearly tried to replicate the scene where a wounded soldier salutes Will Smith for saving his life in the flashback we see. It was unbelievably generic and corny to see this in the way it was done and to think they actually had the intention to conjure real emotion and depth in to that scene just makes me laugh every time I think of it.

Overall, this film could have actually been a good return for M. Night Shyamalan but it was just poorly crafted, weakly scripted and had no good direction to turn to that had me invested or even interested with the events taking place. I wouldn't say I was necessarily let down though because I wasn't in any way anticipating the film as the trailer accurately represents what is to be expected from the movie. Plus, I have never really been a huge Shyamalan fan as it goes, having enjoyed only three of the films he's made. The man is in a huge decline in his career and I just don't see a way back up for him.

Green Lantern Screenwriter Working On Blade Runner 2

What a disastrous combination this could turn out to be. A couple of days ago when the news first leaked, I couldn't quite believe it. I wish I had been able to write a blog entry about it then but I have been busy and this has limited my opportunities to do so. Eventually I have gotten round to doing so and can finally vent my concerns about this piece of news.

First off, let me just get out of the way that this news will have hit plenty more people harder than it did with myself. Blade Runner is a solid film, I appreciate it in many ways and would definitely consider it as a ground breaking film don't get me wrong. I just wouldn't categorize myself as a particular fan boy of it and in no way do I love it or class it as one of my favourite movies. Despite all this, I'm really struggling to find a snippet of information that is positive from this article.

Let's start off with the sheer fact that a Blade Runner 2 is happening. I understand there will be a clear divide between the people who want it/believe it could work and the people who don't want it/don't think it will work. I am on the side of not wanting it to be made. Do I believe it could work? Of course I do, with the correct writer/director combination many concepts or ideas can be made into a great film. Do I think it should be made? Definitely not. One of the great things about Blade Runner in my opinion was that it was so conclusive. It had a solid structure and plot in which every little piece of information was more or less tied up before the film ended. This meant that it works magnificently on its own and doesn't warrant a sequel in any way shape or form. Could this be Ridley Scott just wanting to expand on previous films that he has created? It could well be. Last year we got Prometheus which was a prequel to Alien which meant that he was revisiting a previous project he had worked on.

Now don't get me wrong, this isn't a necessarily bad idea for Ridley to make because for the most part I actually really enjoyed Prometheus. Was it a great film? No, it had some huge flaws and downfalls that stopped it from achieving that status but it was an interesting idea that made for some intriguing storytelling and visuals. My main gripe is that Blade Runner does not need a sequel in any way shape or form. I have no clue whether he is going to expand on the first installment and have it be a continuation of those events and possibly the repercussions caused by Deckard or whether it will be an entirely new protagonist and narrative that we follow.

There could be plenty of arguments that consist of saying this is a perfect time for a sequel to be made. A point could be that so much time has passed that it has given an extended period of time to come up with a great idea for a sequel that may not have been imaginable back in the 80's or 90's. This relates to the technology available in the present day making for some stunning visuals and amazing special effects that could well expand the possibilities for the direction that the new film can take.

Which takes me to the problem that I think the majority of Blade Runner fans and film goers in general will have, that Michael Green, one of five writers on the terrible Green Lantern film has been drafted in to write. I could probably get over the fact that this film is happening and show some faith in the project had there only be the news of Ridley Scott returning and no other names attached to the film as of yet. Now with Green's name mentioned for the person writing the screenplay, I am just baffled as to why this is the choice that has been made. Forget the awful job done on Green Lantern by him, what other piece of commemorative work has he produced? I an unfamiliar with his work apart from this film but after some searching I've seen that he has written for shows such as Smallville and The River. I am confused as to how that stands out as someone who should be writing the next Blade Runner installment as it is clearly a weak CV that he possesses so far. You could argue that the original writers were inexperienced when they took charge of Blade Runner back in 1982 but there was nowhere near as much pressure and expectations riding on their shoulders as Green will have on his now. Can he make the transition from super heroes to sci fi? It is a more complex change that he will need to make and one that he may possibly not be prepared for.

Maybe I am being considerably harsh to diminish Green's ability to produce a solid screenplay for the film but based on his track record, I'm very unmeasured at this moment in time. Who knows, maybe some more news will be released and this could bring my expectations and hopes up but only time will tell. If this is the last we hear about Green's involvement and we have to wait for the film's release to judge his work, so be it.

Closed Circuit - Trailer Review

The trailer for this film gave me the first segment of knowledge about its existence, as before that I have never even heard of it. I must say though that it compelled me enough to write a review for it because I got the vibe that this could be quite an interesting film.

Starting off with the plot, although not entirely unique it does have elements that I can see shining through once I actually watched the film. I got that from the trailer, it will definitely be more innovative than people might give credit to it for. The fact that all of the cameras located close to the crime scene are going to play a pivotal role in determining what exactly happened, who caused it etc is something that interests me. Considering that found footage films are becoming ever increasingly popular nowadays, they seem to have incorporated that in a different sense and used it in a way that it actually serves a purpose to the plot of the film; not just a through away gimmick. As for the general plot, I immediately got a feeling that this could have been heavily influenced by the 7/7 bombings in London. In terms of the general incident that is, when watching the footage that we get via these cameras it was reminiscent of this event. Especially in the sense that it is a terrorist at the helm of the trial being accused for committing the act; it gives me a strong sense that it could well take aspects of this event which I am all for seeing something similar to that whole story playing out on screen.


I would say aside from the general narrative of the film, the ensemble cast was a huge draw for suddenly anticipating this film's release after seeing the trailer. You have big names in there such as Eric Bana, Rebecca Hall and Jim Broadbent as well as lesser known actors but still extremely talented ones including Ciaran Hinds and Riz Ahmed. I believe that the casting director has achieved a wonderful array of diverse talent which will undoubtedly shine in what I expect will be a gripping and entertaining thriller. Having Eric Bana lead the film is a wise choice and one that I am certainly all for. I have a strong sense that his character and performance will be similar to that in Spielberg's Munich which is one of my personal favourites of his. He will be able to draw real emotion and inject life into this protagonist, offering a potentially staggering performance.

The other factor that as soon as I read up on the film and discovered it, immediately sold me was John Crowley directing. For those of you possibly unfamiliar with his work, he directed a film called "Boy A" starring Andrew Garfield and it was a great piece of filmmaking. Rivoting, well crafted and underrated in my opinion, that film never seems to gain the praise and recognition it well and truly deserves. With Crowley at the helm for Closed Circuit, I have complete faith that he can break into the industry once and for all. I believe his style and approach could be perfect for this type of film and I'm certainly interested to see his take on it that's for sure. Even if he doesn't pull it off, I will admire him for trying and all of the signs so far are indicating that he will have immaculately stamped his mark onto the industry yet again with another intriguing and layered film.

I also get the feeling that there will be more than meets the eye with this movie. Something about how the trailer was put together and the general storyline that it's centering on gives me a feeling that we are in for a surprise. I of course could be completely wrong, and despite it potentially being good, will be what everybody is expecting it to be. I'm fine with that but something just tells me that Steven Knight who previously worked on such films as Eastern Promises and Dirty Pretty Things will want to inject something mind blowing into the screenplay and while not getting my hopes up for a potential twist or turn; I'll be keeping my eyes wildly open.

http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Closed-Circuit-First-Trailer-Exudes-Mysterious-Tense-Terrorism-Fueled-Excitement-37845.html